


Shining Silver

by KandiSheek



Series: Kinktober 2019 [23]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Bucky Barnes Is a Good Bro, Dubious Consent, First Time, Hand Jobs, Insecure Steve Rogers, Internalized Homophobia, Kinktober, Kinktober 2019, M/M, Mind Manipulation, Period-Typical Homophobia, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Rape/Non-con Elements, Steve Rogers Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Warlock Tony Stark, Warlocks, but nothing bad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 22:47:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21237368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KandiSheek/pseuds/KandiSheek
Summary: Steve would like to say he didn't know how he'd ended up here but that would be a lie. He could just imagine Bucky screaming in his ear, “One rule, Steve! One fucking rule and you break it! You stupid punk!”Now Steve was going to learn the hard way why people were so scared of insulting a warlock.





	Shining Silver

**Author's Note:**

> So... at first I had planned on making it more ambiguous whether or not Tony was actually a good guy but then I couldn't help myself. I just can't tarnish my baby's rep. Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Kinktober Prompt 23: Hypnosis/Mind Control

Steve would like to say that he didn't know how the hell he'd ended up here but that would be a lie.

_**Why are you running, sweetheart?**_ a deep voice husked in his ear and he slapped his hand over it, almost stumbling on the forest floor. His eyes widened when the roots in his path rose up to meet him. _**We were just starting to have fun!**_

Steve turned on his heel and ran back in the other direction, barely noticing the way that the branches scratched his arms raw.

He could just imagine Bucky screaming in his ear.

“_One rule, Steve! One fucking rule and you break it! You stupid punk!”_

Of course if Bucky was here Steve wouldn't be running at all. Bucky would've known how to take care of this the way all hunters did, by killing the creature. But Steve had never had the privilege of learning the arts of the hunt so he was shit out of luck.

“Boo.”

Steve screamed, jerking away from the man who'd just appeared out of thin air, only to trip over his own feet and tumble head over heels down a slope. He hit hard, crushing his right shoulder under his own weight. Tears sprang to his eyes at the pain.

“Oops. That looked like it hurt.”

He whipped around to find the man sitting on a nearby rock with one leg crossed over the other, a deceptively kind smile on his face. Steve immediately struggled to his feet, hell bent on getting away, but something wrapped around his wrists, pulling him back to the ground. He yelped as his ass hit the dirt.

This was it. Steve was going to die here, alone in a shitty forest, and he had no one to blame but himself because he'd disregarded the number one rule when dealing with supernatural beings.

Never insult a warlock.

_We need a weapon,_ he'd said to him earlier. _The men of Nordall will reach us in three days. We need to defend ourselves._

The man's eyes had glinted with something dangerous but Steve had been too desperate to notice. _And why, pray tell, do you think I would give you weapons? I don't have much interest in the wars among humans._

_Don't have much interest?_ Steve had asked incredulously and after months of oppression and frustration and fear something in him had just snapped. _Really? That's funny because last I heard your kind gained the status of royalty only when you mass murdered millions. Your money is drenched in the blood of my people. You have no leg to stand on!_

Yeah. Not the best first impression he'd ever made.

“Aww, I'm sorry, sweetheart,” the man cooed and Steve could feel his breathing speed up when he realized that the things holding him down were roots coiling tighter and tighter around his arms. He would never be able to break out of these.

“What do you want?” Steve yelled and the man chuckled as he rose to his feet.

“Oh, we're far past what I want, pipsqueak. This is about what you owe me.” He kneeled right in front of Steve and his eyes shone silver under the moonlight. “You really hurt my feelings, you know? And right after you asked for my help, too. Naughty, naughty.”

Steve felt sweat bead on the back of his neck. He could feel the man's fingers trailing up his leg like spider legs but couldn't bend his neck enough to look. The roots were covering him almost head to toe by now.

“Just let me go,” Steve said as firmly as he could and the man laughed.

“Oh sweetheart, you're too precious.” The man leaned down, giving him a pleasant smile just inches from Steve's face. “Of course I'll let you go. You can go wherever you want.” Steve felt a shiver run down his spine as the man's smile stretched wider, too sharp at the edges. “But however far you run you'll always come back to me.”

Steve gasped for breath when the roots tightened around him for a split second before slowly uncoiling from his limbs. As soon as he was free he scooted backwards, holding his injured shoulder in a tight grip. “I would never!” he snapped, glaring at the man.

The man just smiled serenely as he brought up a hand and twisted it. A bolt of white hot energy suddenly zinged through Steve and he doubled over, writhing on the grass as the – _something_ rushed through him, setting his nerve endings on fire –

Until it stopped just as quickly as it came. Steve slumped down on the ground, panting in exhaustion as his poor lungs protested the motion. He tried to turn onto his back but froze when he felt – oh. Oh no.

“Huh,” the man said and Steve fought the impulse to hide behind his hands, glaring the man down as fiercely as he could to distract from the obvious. “Now that's interesting.”

“What did you do?” Steve snapped and the man held up his hands placatingly but the look on his face was pure glee.

“Nothing much really. It seems there are some things you've been denying yourself, hmm?”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Steve gritted out and the man chuckled, bringing his hand up to show Steve the white glow in his palm. Steve recoiled, scooting backwards.

“Relax, darling. I'm not going to hurt you,” the man said in a deceptively calm tone. “Hey, do you know why people are so scared of a warlock's 'curse'?” He said it like he found the word amusing.  
“Everybody knows,” Steve said tightly and it only caused the warlock to smile.

“Ah but you don't know why the people we've touched never return to their village, do you?”

“You kidnap people!” Steve spat out, waving his hand at the roots now lying motionless all around him. “What's not to understand?”

The warlock scoffed. “I've never kidnapped anyone in my life.”

“Bullshit!”

“See, the thing none of you common folk understand,” the warlock said, pausing dramatically. “Is that the ones we've touched don't _want_ to go home.”

Steve immediately saw red. Who the fuck did this bastard think he was, telling Steve this when Mr Higgins' girl was still missing, snatched in the night by one of these warlock fucks. When the Baker family's son was gone forever after returning from a walk pale and frightened before he vanished in the morning light.

“How dare you, you fucking –“

Steve reeled back when the warlock was suddenly right in his face, his nose only inches from Steve's. He hadn't even seen him move.

“You should be more careful with your words, _Steve_.” The sudden use of his name sent chills down Steve's spine. “Otherwise the rest of this evening will be very awkward.”

Well that didn't sound good. “And why is that?” Steve asked warily.

“Because,” the warlock said, a wide grin stretching over his face. “I know exactly what you want. And I will give it to you. A freebie if you will.”

Jesus, the arrogance on this man! Steve kicked out, somehow not hitting the warlock but surprising him enough to gain some personal space. “I don't want anything from you!” he snapped and the man chuckled.

“Trust me, you do.” He held up his glowing palm and Steve felt another one of those bolts zap through him, leaving him gasping at the warlock's eyes shone silver with delight. “I _know_ you do.”

“How would you know?” Steve spat and the warlock tilted his head.

“You really don't know how our powers work, do you?” He sighed as if Steve's ignorance was a great inconvenience to him. “Look, Steve. The reason why people return to me is because I can tell what their heart's desire is. I can tell because this –“ He nodded at the light in his hand. “Lets me see into your soul. And once you've gotten a taste of that which you crave –“ He shrugged with a confident smile. “Well, you just keep coming back for more. Until you never want to leave. It's your choice and yours alone.”

“I would never obey a – a stinking _warmonger_,” Steve spat, regretting it the next second when the man's face turned to stone. Shit, why was he digging his grave deeper when this was what had gotten him into this mess in the first place? And now, after already being cursed with the man's black magic, Steve had gone and insulted him _again_. Bucky was probably getting a severe headache right now without knowing why.

The man's eyes turned scrutinizing and Steve had to fight the urge to squirm under that gaze –

“Tony.”

“Huh?” Steve asked, perplexed, and the man raised an eyebrow.

“I'm sick of your insults. You will address me by my name and my name only.”

“How is _that_ important?” Steve snapped and in the next instant the warlock was looming over him as something – the roots again, probably – tied Steve's hands to the ground behind his back.

“Because I'm going to make you scream,” Tony mumbled with a sly smirk on his face. “And you're going to beg me for it.”

Steve gasped when his clothes disappeared with a flick of Tony's hand, trying to pull up his legs to hide but Tony quickly pinned them down, sitting on Steve's thighs as he flicked his hand again, leaving the warlock suddenly and startlingly naked. Steve could feel his face heat up as he averted his eyes.

“What the fuck are you doing?” he demanded, flinching when he felt Tony's hands on his chest, rubbing slow circles into his skin.

“Giving you what you want.”

Steve felt helpless rage bubbling up inside him but his traitorous cock – which had been hard ever since that first bolt of energy – gave an interested twitch that made Tony laugh.

“See? I can tell that you want this. And you're so embarrassed about it, aren't you? Wanting a man to fuck you? What would your best friend say?”

“Shut up!” Steve shouted, desperately trying to squirm away because Tony's hand had started wandering lower and lower and Steve couldn't fucking handle it. “You're a pervert!”

“Is that what they say?” Tony mused, trailing his fingers just around the base of Steve's cock, making his stomach coil tight with – fuck, no, he couldn't want this, this was obscene, it was –

Tony touched his cock and Steve gasped. No one had ever touched him there before.

“You like this,” Tony said and his voice had lost that smug edge. He sounded like he was stating a fact. “I can tell.”

“I don't!” Steve cried out even though his body was contradicting him, arching into the touch because oh god, it felt good, and Tony's hands were warm and rough and just the right kind of –

He jolted when he suddenly felt warm pressure on his neck, eyes snapping open – when had he closed them? – to see Tony bent over him, silver eyes boring into Steve's as he licked his neck. Steve felt hot and cold all at once, trying to turn away even as he thrust into Tony's fist, moaning at the friction.

“No – Stop it!”

“Do you _really_ want me to stop?” Tony asked and Steve nodded frantically, teeth gritted so hard he thought he'd grind them into dust –

And then the pressure was gone.

Steve sucked in a huge breath, staring down his body with wide eyes where Tony was sitting next to him, fully clothed and looking at him calmly.

“Alright then,” Tony said nonchalantly. “I'll let you go.”

He snapped his fingers and Steve was free, scrambling to his knees and patting his chest where his shirt had suddenly reappeared along with his other clothes. He looked up to see Tony getting to his feet, brushing dirt off his coat.

“Well?” the warlock asked with a raised eyebrow, making a shooing motion at Steve. “Off you go then.”

Steve struggled to his feet on weak knees, wincing when his still hard cock rubbed uncomfortably against his pants. He hesitated for a moment longer, sure that this had to be a trick, but when Tony just kept staring at him Steve turned and ran as fast as his feet could carry him.

He didn't stop until he reached his village, tearing through the streets and ignoring all the shouts and inquiries of his neighbors. Steve ran until he was home, slamming the door shut behind him and sinking to his knees as he panted, desperately trying to get air back into his burning lungs.

“Steve? Steve!” He could hear Bucky trampling down the stairs, Dum Dum and Falsworth probably hot on his heels, before hands grabbed his shoulders and he could see Bucky looking at him with concerned eyes. “What's wrong? What happened?”

“Nothing,” Steve croaked and even he wouldn't have believed himself but Bucky wisely let him go when Steve batted his hands off. “I'm tired. I'll just go to bed.”

“Okay,” Bucky said worriedly as he watched Steve get up on unsteady knees. “You know you can tell me anything, right? I'm here for you,” he said and embarrassingly Steve could feel his eyes fill with tears as he nodded briskly. _What would your best friend say?_

He shouldered past all of them, stumbling up to the room he shared with Jacques and falling onto his cot, feeling completely hollowed out.

Right before he dropped off to sleep he could hear Tony chuckling in his ear. _**You'll come back. They always do.**_

Steve couldn't stop thinking about it.

Life went on the same as always, work from six to twelve, taking care of the garden, getting drinks with Bucky and the rest of the Howling Commandos in the evenings –

But it wasn't quite the same. There was an itch just under Steve's skin that he couldn't reach, his dreams plagued by silver eyes and promises whispered in his ear. More often than not Steve woke up hard and sweaty enough that he had to go outside and dump a bucket of water over his head before he could start the day.

Bucky had noticed of course but Steve could never find the words to explain it without revealing too much about what happened. So he pulled away, retreating more and more into himself until he couldn't even go to the kitchen without someone looking at him funny. It was suffocating.

After about three weeks of this Steve finally snapped, throwing down the dish towel and ignoring everyone's eyes on him as he stormed out of the house.

“Where are you going?” Bucky called after him and Steve felt inexplicably angry all of a sudden.

“Out!” was his curt reply before he trudged down the streets and into the woods beyond. Steve was fuming, his face hot with embarrassment because he knew he shouldn't have snapped at his friends but –

God, Steve was so fucking _frustrated._

It didn't help that people had started reporting sightings of the men of Nordall on the edges of their kingdom. Steve wasn't a part of their warrior ranks but that didn't mean that he wasn't gearing up for a fight. He'd heard stories about what those men were capable of and he'd rather die than subject the people of his village to these horrors.

And yet he couldn't fucking concentrate on the threat because he was too busy agonizing over the very warlock who had refused to help him. Fucking fantastic.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here?”

Steve whipped around at the familiar voice and stumbled back when he saw Tony, casually leaning against a tree.

“Stay back!” Steve yelped, raising his fists in defense as adrenaline coursed through his veins. “I'm warning you!”

Tony just raised an eyebrow, looking utterly unimpressed, and Steve could feel rage take over him.

“What do you want?” Steve snapped, suddenly itching for a fight, to slam his fist into that stupid, smug, infuriating face. “Were you following me?”

Tony rolled his eyes, pointing a thumb over his shoulder. “Following you to my own fucking house? I don't think so, Steve.”

Steve looked around the tree at – yeah, that was Tony's castle on the edge of that meadow. What the hell, why had he walked all the way here?

“I told you you'd come back,” Tony said with a small, satisfied grin. “What is it, hm? You want another taste?”

Steve's blood boiled at the thought, his mind drifting back to Tony's hands on him, the fire that his touch had ignited in Steve's stomach –

“I want a weapon!” he blurted instead, trying not to panic at his conflicting thoughts. Wanting Tony was wrong and Steve wasn't like that. “To defend my village!”

Tony sighed in disappointment, shaking his head. “That's not what brought you here. And even if it was,” he paused, giving Steve a calculating look. “You already know my answer to that request. It hasn't changed.”

“We need that weapon!” Steve said, uncomfortably aware that he was starting to sound desperate. “They're almost here and our troops won't be enough to hold them off –“

“Don't worry about that,” Tony said and Steve felt indignant anger coil in his gut.

“Those are my people, you arrogant fu–“

He was cut off by a knife hovering right under his jaw, making his breathing catch in his throat. For a long second he and Tony were locked in a standstill, staring at each other over the knife's edge, before Tony sighed and snapped it out of existence.

“Sorry. My anger gets to me sometimes.”

Steve did his best not to look intimidated even though he was pretty sure his hands were shaking. “Look, even if you don't care about these people there are a lot of us that do. You can help, can't you?”

Tony gave him a considering look. “I could, yes.” His eyes sharpened as he smiled. “I can help you, too, with your little problem. You know I can give you what you want.”

“I don't want –“ Steve couldn't even say it. “I like girls!”

“You've never even fucked a woman.”

Steve sputtered but Tony smirked knowingly at him.

“The thought grosses you out, doesn't it?” Tony asked slyly. “Touching their pussies and sucking on their tits. All those things your friends say are so great but you couldn't care less, could you? Because while they're comparing their girlfriends' tit size you're trying not to look at their naked bodies when you're at the river, bathing in the nude because it doesn't matter to them, right? They don't know that you_ want_ to look, that you think about touching their cocks when you're jerking off late at night –“

“Stop!” Steve shouted, slapping his hands over his ears and breathing heavily through his mounting panic. Because all of that – all of that –

“You know I'm right.”

“You're wrong!” Steve shouted hysterically. “I'm not like that! It's perverted. It's –“

Tony put a hand on Steve's shoulder and Steve shivered, unable to turn away from Tony's silver eyes on him. “You can't hide it from me, Steve. I know.”

And Steve felt something in his chest crumble because he'd been so careful, every day of his life, not to look, not to linger – and yet here it was, every shameful thing and thought about him that he was trying so hard to hide laid out in the open –

“It's okay, you know. I'm the same.”

Steve's head snapped up at the surprisingly soft admission. Tony gave him a serious look, tracing Steve's shoulder blade through his shirt and Steve leaned into the touch before he could check himself.

“I realized that I like boys when I was eight,” Tony said quietly and Steve sucked in a sharp breath. To hear it said like that, so brazen, as if it wasn't a sin just to think about it – “I mean, I like girls too, don't get me wrong,” Tony continued with a wink. “I'm an equal opportunist. But yeah, my parents didn't take very kindly to that. Kicked me out of the house when I was fourteen.”

Steve couldn't even breathe when Tony's hand trailed up to his neck, massaging it so gently that it made Steve relax despite his anxiety, leaning into the touch.

“I was just like you,” Tony mumbled and Steve startled, eyes snapping open when he realized how close Tony suddenly was. Steve could almost count the eyelashes fanned out over his cheeks when Tony blinked. “Embarrassed. Scared. Isolated. But you know what? I learned something very valuable during those years.” Tony smiled. “Pretending to be something you're not will only make you miserable. And if the rules of the people around you force you to hide who you are –“ Tony's eyes flashed with a fire that made Steve's breath catch in his throat. “You change the rules.”

Steve let out a shaky breath, his heart pounding in his chest. Tony was so close that he could practically feel the warmth his body emitted and it was so hard not imagine what it would be like, to touch and be touched by someone he wanted, just once –

“You can't tell anyone,” Steve croaked and he hated how juvenile it sounded, how scared, but Tony's eyes softened impossibly as he looked at him.

“Sweetie, I am the very soul of discretion. Nothing you say or do will ever leave my lips. I promise you.”

Steve took an unsteady breath, feeling something inside him settle. Bucky had told him all about warlocks the first time Steve went to seek Tony out. He knew that Tony couldn't make promises that he didn't intend to keep. He was bound by his word.

So Steve nodded, trying to look more confident than he felt when he said “Alright then. Show me.”

Tony snapped his fingers and for a second Steve's world spun on his axis before he stumbled over his own feet, suddenly standing in the middle of an ostentatious bedroom. He whipped around in shock, yelping when a hand came down on his shoulder, but it was just Tony, giving him an apologetic smile.

“Sorry. I know that's weird. You okay?”

Steve swallowed, his mouth far too dry to answer, because Tony was standing right next to him and he _wasn't wearing clothes_. Well, he still had some fabric covering his crotch but that wasn't nearly enough to keep Steve's heart from stuttering. Tony followed Steve's gaze down at himself and chuckled.

“Yeah. Convenient, I know.” He reached for Steve jacket, just fiddling with the buttons there. “Though I think you might prefer the old-fashioned way,” he breathed right next to Steve's ear, sending a shiver down his spine. His eyes were bright and focused when he looked at Steve, tugging at the buckle that held Steve's collar closed. “May I?”

Steve could only nod wordlessly, his body stiff with tension as Tony stepped in front of him and slowly unbuttoned his jacket. He took his time, caressing every inch of Steve's body revealed even though he was still wearing an undershirt. By the time he reached the bottom Steve had managed to relax enough to return the favor with a hesitant touch to Tony's naked shoulders. He didn't dare let his hands wander further but Tony still gave him an encouraging smile.

“Is this okay?” Tony asked, putting his hands just under the hem of Steve's undershirt. Steve sucked in a breath but nodded and Tony took a moment to caress Steve's trembling stomach before he started slowly tugging the shirt up. Steve obediently ducked his head and raised his arms so Tony could move it off him and it shouldn't have been a big deal because Steve had been naked around the Howling Commandoes so many times without feeling embarrassed –

But this was different and Steve could feel every flaw, every way in which he fell short of other men like they were burned into his skin. Surely Tony – muscular, sunburnt, handsome Tony – must be –

“Can I?” Tony asked and Steve saw no disappointment in his eyes, only honest appreciation as his gaze wandered over Steve's body. It made heat swirl in Steve's gut to be appraised like this and he had to take a deep breath to compose himself.

“Yes,” he said quietly and Tony didn't need any further invitation.

He guided Steve backwards until Steve's legs hit the bed, tumbling him gracelessly onto the sheets. Tony didn't seem to mind, climbing onto the bed after Steve and immediately straddling his hips. Steve felt his breath catch in his throat with something like panic because like this Tony could – he could –

Tony's eyes glinted and before Steve knew what was happening Tony had rolled off him and reversed their positions so Steve was now lying between Tony's spread thighs, looking down on the warlock.

“Is this better?” Tony asked and Steve's stomach was doing nervous cartwheels at their proximity. God, this was so intimate, Steve had never been so close to someone before, what would Tony expect him to do –

Tony's eyes narrowed and with a grunt he rolled them again, pulling Steve up until their were both kneeling on the bed, facing each other with enough space between them that Steve could breathe.

“This is okay, right?” Tony asked and Steve flushed with embarrassment. Fuck, he was acting like a nervous virgin, what kind of man couldn't even handle lying on top of someone without fucking hyperventilating –

“Hey. Hey!” Tony was gripping his arms and Steve looked up at him in shame. There was no judgement in Tony's eyes, only honest concern. “Look, we don't have to do anything you don't want to. I'm not expecting anything. This is for _you_.”

Steve breathed in shakily. “Sex isn't supposed to be about just one person though, is it?”

Tony blinked, looking honestly surprised, before he smiled brilliantly. “Look at you! We've got a regular Casanova over here.”

Steve blushed and Tony chuckled, running a hand down Steve's chest.

“Seriously though. There is no right or wrong. If all you want is for us to sit here like this, hold hands and talk about our gay feelings we can do that.” Tony's eyes glinted as he smirked. “But if you want more...” His fingers brushed feather-light over the tent in Steve's pants, making him twitch into the touch with a soft gasp. “Then I can give you that, too.”

Steve narrowed his eyes and in a rush of boldness grabbed Tony's hand and pressed it more firmly against his hard cock before he reached out to grasp Tony's in return. It felt a little weird and a lot awkward but the noise Tony made in response made Steve feel like he was seven feet tall. “You said you would show me something,” Steve said as confidently as he could, not looking away from Tony's dark eyes. “So show me.”

He wasn't prepared for the sly smirk on Tony's face or the sudden shock to his system when Tony's hand slipped inside his pants and touched him directly, skin to skin. It felt just as good as the last time he'd done it and Steve was already embarrassingly close to the edge just from that one touch. He couldn't suppress a moan when Tony's hand closed into a tight fist, rubbing up and down in a slow, steady rhythm.

“Don't fight it,” Tony mumbled quietly and his voice only fueled the heat swirling low in Steve's stomach. “Just do what feels good.”

Steve hips stuttered forward of their own free will and that was even better because Tony tightened his fist, holding it steady so Steve could ride it.

His breathing was so loud and unsteady it sounded like he was only seconds from an asthma attack but Steve couldn't care less. Tony's hand was warm and rough and soft in all the right places and he was surprised by how much better it was than his own hand. A squeeze right at the tip of his cock made him groan, his free hand latching on to Tony's shoulder and clutching it like a lifeline.

“Tony,” he gasped and Tony hummed, twisting his fist and meeting Steve's thrusts in the best possible way, and it felt so good Steve could feel his body already gearing up for completion, everything going tight and hot and oh god, he wanted – he needed –

“Come, Steve,” Tony commanded and something in Steve snapped, hips grinding desperately as he moaned out his orgasm, coming all over Tony's hand and the satin bedsheets beneath him. It seemed to go on forever, Steve's back bowing under the strain, and even when he was done Tony didn't stop stroking him, squeezing every last drop of pleasure out of Steve until he was whimpering with how sensitive he was. Steve collapsed the moment Tony let go, head falling heavily against Tony's shoulder and eyes drifting shut in exhaustion. Tony chuckled, running a hand through his hair.

“There you go, sweetheart. How was that?”

“Good,” Steve slurred, already halfway off to sleep, and he barely registered Tony pressing a kiss to his forehead before he was lowered onto the sheets and tucked in with care.

_**Sleep,**_ Tony's voice whispered in his ear and Steve smiled, burrowing deeper into the blankets. _**I'll take good care of you.**_

Steve woke up with a start, sitting upright in seconds as he took in his unfamiliar surroundings. A hot wave of shame rushed over him as last night's events came back to him all at once. Oh god, he'd touched Tony's – and Tony had –

“You're awake.”

Steve would deny it to his grave but he screamed like a girl at the sudden appearance of Tony on the edge of his bed. He pulled the sheets up to his chest, heart pounding double time. Tony rolled his eyes.

“Relax, I just wanted to know if you'd be down for breakfast.”

Steve glared at him warily but eventually nodded, waiting for Tony to turn away with a sigh before he got out of bed, quickly putting on all of his discarded clothes. When he was done Tony nodded, leading the way out of the room as Steve followed him into the –

“Wow,” Steve said like an idiot and Tony grinned at him, spreading his arms.

“Pretty cool, huh? This is where the magic happens.” He chuckled to himself as if he'd made an inside joke but Steve was too transfixed by the huge walls absolutely _covered_ in machinery, pumps and tubes and cogwheels all moving to an inaudible rhythm. He briefly wondered how come he didn't hear any of this commotion last night but that was quickly overshadowed by his fascination.

The castle was _alive_.

“Breakfast,” Tony reminded him, walking ahead but stopping when he realized Steve wasn't following him. He frowned. “Come on, the eggs will get cold.”

“Why don't you want to help us?” Steve asked, his voice choked but hard at the same time. “If you have... all this.” He waved a hand at the machines. “Why aren't you helping us?”

Tony's face was frozen into an unreadable mask but Steve wasn't afraid. He wouldn't go so far as to say he trusted the warlock but Tony had shown him compassion and kindness and Steve had no reason to believe that Tony would kill him over a simple question after everything. Tony seemed to be hashing out an internal argument with himself before he sighed, waving a hand at Steve.

“Come on. I want to show you something.”

This time Steve followed along readily as Tony lead him down several corridors, getting smaller and smaller until they were standing in front of a door that Steve would almost call normal-sized.

“You can't speak of this to anyone,” Tony warned him, not waiting for an answer before he pushed the door open and waved Steve inside.

For a second Steve didn't know what he was looking at but then the realization hit him like cold water.

There were pictures. Pictures of places that Steve knew, in his village, and places that Steve had never seen before. They were _moving,_ trees swaying in the wind and – oh god, there were _people_ there, walking around and going about their daily business –

Steve swallowed heavily when he caught sight of young Margaret Shiller jumping rope in the main plaza on one of the screens, the same way he'd seen her do so many times when school was out.

“What is this?” Steve breathed and he heard Tony sigh heavily as he stepped into the room next to Steve.

“This allows me to see everything that's happening, everywhere in our country. JARVIS alerts me if there's any trouble brewing.”

“Jarvis?” Steve asked tonelessly.

“That would be me, Mr Rogers. Nice to make your acquaintance.”

Steve jumped at the voice that seemed to come from the ceiling, whipping around in terror. “What the –“

“Nice job, J,” Tony grumbled, putting a hand on Steve's shoulder. “Relax. He's not really there. I built him.”

“You built a _person?”_ Steve asked hysterically, pulling away from Tony. This was all becoming too much at once.

“JARVIS isn't a person,” Tony said, hands raised placatingly. “He's like a... a machine butler, if you will.”

“Well met, Sir.”

Steve jumped again, his skin crawling, and Tony sighed.

“Anyway, point is, I know everything that's going on.” He gestured at the screens. “Whenever there's an attack I'm the first to know. Usually the defense mechanisms at the borders take care of the threat but when they don't –“ Tony shrugged. “Well, I have other means to subdue them.”

Steve's head was spinning at the implications, thinking back to all those stories of battles that had been mysteriously turned in their favor, of enemy troops getting lost in forests, of bridges suddenly collapsing – “That was you?”

Tony just shrugged again and Steve looked at him like he was seeing him for the first time.

“Then why – the men of Nordall –“

Tony grimaced. “They haven't attacked yet. They're just prowling around at the borders, making everyone nervous and I can't –“ He sighed heavily. “Look, defense magic only works when there's been an offense first. I'm still waiting for them to make a move.”

That sounded... logical. Steve stared at Tony for a long time, processing everything he'd just heard and trying to fit it in with the image he'd built up over the years of the warlock in his secluded castle. Something didn't add up.

“What about the Higgins girl?” he asked accusingly and Tony blinked in confusion for a moment before it clicked.

“Ah, you mean Melissa?” Tony smiled. “She was a cute one. Wanted more than anything to see the world, so I sent her to Grendorff. Last I heard she was in Lorendale. She writes me letters sometimes.”

Steve felt like he just got punched in the face. “But – what about her parents?”

Tony's face hardened. “You don't know? They used to beat the shit out of her. I think that's one of reasons she wanted to leave so badly.”

“Oh,” Steve said softly, his entire world view slowly tilting on its axis. “And... the Baker's son?”

Tony smiled wryly. “The Baker's _daughter_. I'm guessing she really started a whole new life down there?”

It took a second for it to click but Steve remembered, the day after Rogan disappeared, a young woman named Kendall coming into their village like she belonged there and asking for room and board until she could get a job. No one knew where she had come from and why she'd chosen their village of all places to start a new life. It had been quite the uproar back then.

“I can't...” Steve said faintly and a second later Tony was pushing him into a chair – where did that even come from – and telling him to breathe. Steve batted him away, pushing down on his chest until he could suck in enough air to ask “Why didn't you tell me?”

Tony stilled, tilting his head in confusion. “What?”

“About all –“ Steve waved a hand at the screens. “This.”

Tony was silent for a long time before he said quietly “People ask me for weapons a lot, did you know that? If I were to supply one I would have to supply them all. It's better like this.”

And Steve nodded because that actually made a lot of sense. He looked up at the warlock, at Tony, and felt like he was seeing an entirely different person.

“You're a good man,” Steve said and Tony flinched, his eyes widening before he looked away with a blush. It was so unexpectedly cute that Steve couldn't help but grin, making Tony swat at his shoulder.

“Shut up,” Tony mumbled and Steve laughed, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted off of him.

“So,” Steve said cheekily, getting to his feet and – with a boldness that surprised even him – grabbing Tony's hand. Tony gave him a surprised look and Steve just smiled at him. “Breakfast?”

Tony eyed him dubiously for a moment before he grinned brilliantly. The sight made Steve's heart skip a beat. “Okay.”

“Steven Grant Rogers, where the _fuck_ have you been?” Bucky snapped as soon as Steve walked through the door, grabbing the smaller man by the shoulders and shaking him. “I've been looking _everywhere!_ You didn't even come home last night, do you know how _worried_ I've been –“

“Relax, Bucky,” Steve said serenely. “Everything's fine.”

“_Relax,_ he says!” Bucky howled but Steve could see Falsworth and Dernier laughing at the kitchen table behind him. When Steve grinned at them Falsworth wolf whistled as Dernier gave him finger guns.

“Congrats on getting laid, Stevie,” Dernier hollered and Bucky's head whipped back and forth between them before an unholy glee lit up his eyes.

“No way, Steve, did you really?”

Steve shrugged nonchalantly, walking past Bucky with a swagger in his step as he said “So what if I did.”

“Oh no,” Bucky called after him with honest joy in his voice. “You don't get to squirrel away now. Who is she? Tell us all about her!”

Steve looked back at him, at his best friend who had never judged him for anything, and smiled softly. “You know what? I think someday I will.”


End file.
